Caitlin Clark beat three U.S. Olympic gold medalists in her WNBA return Friday night, but the Indiana Fever blew a 28-point lead at one point in their win over the Phoenix Mercury.
Clark was sensational in the first half and came off the court in a rush after her month-long break from the league due to the Paris Games. But the 98-89 victory did not reflect how tense the game was at times for her team.
At halftime, Clark had scored 16 points and her team had a 48-20 lead over Mercury. But in the third quarter, Mercury, led by Kahleah Copper, overcame the deficit and even had a one-point lead.
But Clark and the Fever rallied to pull off what could be a pivotal playoff win, bringing their record to 12-15 on the season.
Copper, Brittney Griner and Diana Taurasi won gold in Paris on Sunday and played Thursday night, beating the Chicago Sky and Angel Reese. But they refused to give up on the Fever in a stunning fourth quarter that turned into a shootout.
Clark finished with 29 points and her 10th double-double of the season in front of a packed Gainbridge Fieldhouse crowd that had waited more than a month to see its star player back in action.
“We were amazing, we had some lapses that we didn’t find very pleasant but we always found a way to respond,” Clark said.
“This sets the tone for what we want to do for the rest of the season, to win everything. We have to go one by one and on Sunday we have another big match.”
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